Sept. 29 (Bloomberg) -- The Los Angeles City Council
approved plans by Anschutz Entertainment Group to build a new
downtown football stadium and convention space, opening the door
for a National Football League team to return to the city.

The council voted 12-0 yesterday to support plans for a $1
billion stadium adjacent to AEG’s Staples Center arena and the
L.A. Live entertainment district. Three members were absent. The
backers must still recruit at least one team to play there.

AEG’s owner, billionaire Philip Anschutz, announced plans
Sept. 18 to sell his sports and live-entertainment company,
complicating the two-year approval effort. The contract between
the city and Los Angeles-based AEG contains more than 1,000
pages of protections in the event the company is sold, said
Miguel A. Santana, L.A.’s chief administrative officer.

“This is an agreement between two institutions,” Santana
said at the meeting. “Just as there will be several mayors,
city council presidents and city councils during this contract,
it was always contemplated there could be new ownership at
AEG.” The convention center space will cost an additional
$314.6 million.

Patrick Soon-Shiong, a Los Angeles billionaire who has
expressed interest in buying AEG, attended the meeting, sitting
in the front row next to former Los Angeles Laker Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Tim Leiweke, AEG’s president and chief executive
officer, the Los Angeles Times reported.

‘Historic Moment’

“We are pleased that the council approved the plan,”
Soon-Shiong said in an e-mailed statement. “This is a historic
moment for the city and the community.

The proposed Farmers Field and new meeting space will
create jobs and revenue for the city, Leiweke said at the
hearing. The 78,000-seat stadium will be paid for with private
funds, he said.

‘‘The general fund will never be at risk, you have our word
on that and it’s in the agreement,’’ Leiweke said. It was
important for AEG to reveal plans for the sale of the company
ahead of the council’s vote, he said.

Abdul-Jabbar and former NFL quarterback Rodney Peete, who
attended the University of Southern California before a 16-year
professional career, spoke in favor of the stadium proposal.

The downtown stadium proposal has competition from Majestic
Realty Co. Chairman Ed Roski Jr., who proposed building a
stadium in the City of Industry, 18 miles (30 kilometers) east
of Los Angeles.

NFL Watching

‘‘We are closely monitoring all stadium developments in Los
Angeles,’’ Greg Aiello, an NFL spokesman, said in an e-mailed
statement.

Members of Play Fair Farmers Field, a group representing
residents in the neighborhood who are suing the state over its
role in advancing the project, also spoke at the hearing to
raise concern over the impact of the project on the area,
including traffic and pollution.

As part of the agreement, AEG will pay for infrastructure
improvements, including a public space in Gilbert Lindsay Plaza,
upgraded roads and public transit, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio
Villaraigosa said in an e-mailed statement.

‘‘We drove a hard bargain, and got the best deal possible
for all Angelenos,’’ Villaraigosa said. ‘‘This is truly a game
changer for Los Angeles.’’

The stadium and convention center project represents a
development with the opportunity to spur badly needed economic
activity, said Councilman Paul Koretz, who represents parts of
the city’s westside and San Fernando Valley.

‘‘We are in a recession and facing a significant budget
shortfall,’’ Koretz said. ‘‘We can’t just cut our way out of it.
We have to have development to get ourselves out of this
recession.’’